Peekskill American Legion Call to Action for Hometown to Heroes

The following is a user-generated announcement from Korean War veteran , of the American Legion Post 274 in Peekskill. To post your news on Patch, click .

During the war years in the 1940s, which was a time when money was scarce and there were shortages and rationing off, so many items the people in this area put their worries aside and took care of our homecoming veterans.

I would like to be able to take you back and let you see how despite all their problems, the people residing in the then-Village of Peekskill, the Town of Cortlandt and so many other locations in Westchester County disregarded their  own problems to aid  the wounded veterans returning to their communities.

There were several badly wounded veterans who are referred to in local news articles which we have been able to review in detail with the assistance of Mr. Bob Boyle from the Field Library in Peekskill.

One of the heroes who was welcomed home and assisted by so many members of our communities was Jack Buhs who not only was able to come back home and live his life out in Peekskill with his wonderful wife Anne and his family but he gave so much more to this community and especially the youth in this area despite his wounds.

Jack overcame so much, received training and opened a watch shop adjacent to the Paramount Theatre.

In addition he gave so much time to the youth programs, churches and other community activities that we can never forget him and his deeds and what a magnificent person he was...

Jack overcame being shot down over Germany in 1944 and his parachute being partially collapsed which caused him to plummet from 2000 feet and crushed his spine when he hit the ground and this caused him to spend the rest of his life in a wheel chair but he came home and was able to live in a specially modified house here in Peekskill built after the community and surrounding communities in Westchester and as far away as Brooklyn raised the funds to build a special needs home that he required because of his injuries. The project took three years and involved adults and children, schools and churches, business operations and workers and so many from the community contributing the funds that they could and volunteering labor and materials to get the job done.

At the same time the community provided needed assistance to many other wounded veterans who came home or made their home here and to many members of the families of those who never made it home.

It was also during the time when the Montrose Veterans hospital project started and came to exist here and now  many of the recently wounded will be trated at this site again.

Today, the times are similar to the WW II  period in our history and  again  people have great burdens and a lot of financial distress and the country can’t possibly fund all the veterans needs through a government under so much strain and demand.

Now is the time that the community must do it again and keep the Covenant with the wounded and their families and the families struggling with so many problems while their loved ones are currently in harms way.

That is why we have scheduled community meetings and are trying to enlist not only veterans but everyone able in this community to participate in the Hometown For Heroes program and the Comfort Wounded warrior program which had so much success in our first year (2011)and will hopefully do even better this year.

The is fully involved and hopes to get others to volunteer to help with the Financial Assistance programs undertaken by the Legion and other Veterans groups to assist those families in need of our help while their family members are defending our country today. These programs are funded by the American Legion and other veterans organizations on a national level but communities must help for the programs to succeed.

We can do it if we all come together now as the citizens of this area have done before. Several members of our Post were there to lend support in the times mentioned during WW11.  We were involved then and are going to do it again with the help of those in our area who will answer the call today.

We will be hosting public meetings and urging everyone who can to join us in the job that needs to be done for those who we can never fully repay for their sacrifices.

Please pray for our success as a community and support the programs we will be promoting to get the job done and that our success in these programs  may lead to similar efforts throughout the state and country.

The wounded continue to multiply and their needs will be with us for many years. You can assist in so many ways.

 We will be urging you to do whatever you can as long as the need exists.

Today, there are still patients at the Montrose site from WWII and every war since. Many gave up the chance to be husbands or wives or fathers and mothers or to ever have grandchildren or so many things we take for granted. We must keep faith with them now because our society and our freedoms will always depend on men and women willing to replace them and stand in Harms Way for us.